As we enter the snowiest months in Colorado, it’s time to gear up and enjoy the outdoors! Our neighborhood offers excellent sledding opportunities at Woodmen Valley Park or snowshoeing through the hoodoos. But before you build your first snowman, remember to break out your snow shovel and clear the walkways around your house.
You may ask why this is important. Wouldn’t we all rather stay inside on a cold, snowy day and drink hot cocoa instead? Yes! But you can easily help your community by shoveling your driveway and sidewalk after a storm. There are both safety and security reasons (and of course, those pesky rules!).
First, shoveling walkways provides a safe route for our community to walk. Several residents walk through Peregrine daily. Clear sidewalks make it possible for residents to safely continue their activity even on the coldest days and prevents people from walking in the street.
Personal Property – We kindly ask that all residents remove snow from personal sidewalks within 24 hours after the end of the falling snow. This includes all sidewalks on your lot that border a street. These guidelines can be found under the Owner’s Responsibility section of the Peregrine Master Association Rules & Regulations.
- Owner Responsibility PC’s, Article I, Section 104. (Once in the PDF, use CMD/CTRL+F to search within the PDF for specific keywords – e.g., snow removal).
Common Areas – Your HOA has contracted services with Unlimited Landscape Services (ULS) to remove snow on all of the walkways in our neighborhood common areas. Their team consists of 1 person on an ATV and 2 people behind shoveling the more challenging areas. They are typically out in the neighborhood by 7am and have it cleared by 10am. Even during bad storms, it is typically done within 24 hours of snowfall.
City Streets – Plowing of the city streets is the responsibility of the City of Colorado Springs. Their first priority is to plow arterials and collectors (most streets with stripes) first. This is so the streets with the most amount of regular and emergency traffic are as safe as possible. These streets in Peregrine are West Woodmen Road and Orchard Valley Road. Due to resource constraints, residential streets will not be plowed until at least 6″ of snow has fallen. You can read more about the City’s Snow Plow Information here.
Lastly, shoveling your walkways provides security to your home. Clearing snow from your driveway and sidewalk shows that you are either a) home or b) someone is taking care of and watching your home. If you are going out of town, it is especially important to ask someone to shovel walkways; fresh snow on a driveway for several days is a clear sign that residents are out of town and may look inviting to uninvited guests.
Are you looking for help shoveling this winter? Post something on Nextdoor! I’m sure some neighborhood kids are looking for extra money this season.
Get out and enjoy this beautiful neighborhood! Happy New Year!
